New wreck of the Beaver in Cowichan Bay

[MarkH]

The semi-replica of the old steamship Beaver (the original sank off Stanley Park in Vancouver) was moored in Victoria Harbour for years. It sank in Cowichan Bay a couple of weeks ago. I thought of diving it, but it's about a 1/2 kilometer swim unless you have access to the longshoreman's wharf. I thought it would be about 30' deep according to the area and the marine chart, but the muddy area drops off steeply. Here's a recent article saying it's at 120': Cowichan Bay Village .com » SS Beaver Upright 120 Feet Down I talked to a guy years ago who said it was made from an old navy scow. The paddle wheel is fake. The ship was diesel-driven with a propeller.

---------- Post added May 21st, 2014 at 06:01 PM ----------

Here's an older article with some photos from when it was on the surface:Cowichan Bay Village .com » Beaver on the Bottom

 

[Timelapse]

Hello
Do you have a underwater camera ,I might be able to arrange a small dingy boat out of Cowichan Bay.
Here is a Video I have made of the vessel.
[video=youtube;6L0VvY-gLMw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6L0VvY-gLMw[/video]

 

[MarkH]

I have my own 10' zodiac that I've been considering taking out there. The only problem is knowing exactly where it sank. The pilings it was tied to are around the 60' contour line on a marine chart. One of the above articles says it's at 120', which would put it farther out in the bay.

 

[Timelapse]

I have my own 10' zodiac that I've been considering taking out there. The only problem is knowing exactly where it sank. The pilings it was tied to are around the 60' contour line on a marine chart. One of the above articles says it's at 120', which would put it farther out in the bay.

I know exactly where it sank.And I know the guy who posted the who posted the 120 feet article .
email me, lets set something up, Ranchero_57@hotmail.com

 

[MarkH]

I tried to see if I could find it today. I launched my boat at the Cowichan Bay ramp and went 1/2-kilometer to the pilings where the Beaver was tied up when it sank. Visibility looked promising from the surface. I could see eelgrass beds about 7 feet below the boat. I descended down the pair of pilings where it was tied. The bottom here was about 30' deep, which was shallower than expected. The visibility was also getting worse as I went deeper. There was a muddy slope going down to about 60' deep. I saw a large, white metal box with an open lid that said "life jackets" on it. I assumed it was from the Beaver. Down here the visibility was about 6' and it was very dark. I continued to swim straight out into the bay. The bottom here was flat. I didn't notice a slope anymore, but my computer showed that it was gradually getting deeper. I swam for quite a while. I eventually reached 90' deep and my computer said I was already building up decompression time. It was completely dark and even with my light I couldn't see my fins. Visibility must have been around 3'. I bumped into the bottom a few times without seeing it. I figured finding the wreck in these conditions wasn't going to happen so I turned around and swam back up the slope. It was a relief when I could see around me with natural light again. The sidescan image shows the wreck is 120' deep, which means it must be pretty far away from where it was tied up. I'd guess at least a few hundred meters from the pilings. It must have broken away from the pilings and drifted while slowly sinking.